[T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy Note II] winlinmac001:
I'm sure many of us have gone through countless returns, replacements, and refunds, with Samsung's range of Galaxy smartphones, believing that our phones were defective as a result of absurd manufacturing anomalies and quality control problems. Though, we are not Samsung factory workers, it appears Samsung has given us some labor. Obviously spending $700+ on a phone is not little. However, according to Samsung, everything I am about to disclose is normal. To alleviate the hassle of dealing with a company that has a pretty poor track-record when it comes to quality control; I would strongly advise not to return your Note 2 to the service center or store for the following reasons,

I have listed common problems some of us have come across; along with are some Do-It-Yourself Tips and Tricks to resolve these minute problems.

Squeaky back cover?

- Ensure all sides of the back cover have clipped in properly; there should be no gaps, the fitting should be seamless

- If that doesn't resolve the squeaking, replace the back cover with a new one (cheap plastic tends to expand)

- Try not to remove and install the back cover over and over again, as that will eventually weaken the plastic clippings on the back cover

- Do Not Remove the Back Cover Forcefully!

Light leaking on sides of home button?

- The home button has plagued Samsung for the past couple of years. But don't worry, your home button is not defective.

- The button is not uniformly seated properly, that explains. As a matter of fact, your home button should be flushed, not elevated above the display. To check if your button has light leakage, go into a dark room, angle your phone while the capacitive lights are on, and verify light leakage in the home button area.

- Solution: Place a piece of tape over the whole button, ensure that the tape is placed beyond the edges and sides of the home button. The tape will help keep the button seated properly and flushed, equally on both sides. Now as long as you massage and use the home button a few times a day, and remove the tape after a couple of weeks, the light will no longer protrude through the sides of the home button.

Black specks / Bezel Chrome Finish production errors?

- A lot of you may not be noticing this; only if you orient your phone at a particular angle, you may notice the chrome paint color inconsistency on the bezel (the chrome paint job was not done properly), black specks will show to some degree; now if it bothers you so much, put a case on. There is nothing you can do about it; all Note 2's have this quality control problem one way or the other.

- You don't have to worry if the metallic painting is not done properly behind the phone, as the back cover will conceal it.

Loose Volume Rocker control buttons / Power button?

- As long as you feel the button feedback and hear the button press on both volume and power keys, but feel that the buttons are loose, use a case, or massaging the buttons for a little while will help.

AMOLED Display Issues?

- Refer to the following thread, http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2108073

I will update this thread if I can think any more things to look out for when buying a Note 2. If you have any suggestions share them in this thread. Hopefully, someday, this thread can have a sticky.

Hope this helps, enjoy your phone! :cowboy:

This thread applies to International Note 2 and U.S. Carrier Variants.